Here are the 4 big ways America's massive student loan industry could change in 2017, according to the CEO of one of the world's hottest fintech startups

It's been a big year for student loan debt. Fueled by the
voices of burdened borrowers who share
more than $1.3 trillion in outstanding student debt, the
commentary surrounding the student debt crisis seemed to
reached a fever pitch this election season, and with good
reason.

Now that the election is over and the hard work of governance
by a new administration and Congress is beginning, it's worth
considering: What will 2017 bring for student loan borrowers?

Expanding income-driven repayment

Expansion of income-based repayment has been the central tenant
of President-elect Trump's student debt plan. As outlined, his
plan would expand the existing program by capping repayment at
12.5 percent of discretionary income and forgiving any
remaining balance after 15 years. The Obama Administration's
program, in comparison, caps monthly payments at 10 percent of
discretionary income and forgives outstanding undergraduate
debt after 20 years.

The plan is not without added costs. The Government Accounting
Office (GAO) recently issued a report that found the cost
to the government of the existing income-driven repayment plan
jumped to $53 billion from $28 billion for student loans issued
from 2009 to 2016. Additionally, one-third of student loan debt
expected to be repaid via income-driven repayments will be
forgiven by the federal government through programs such as
Public Service Loan Forgiveness.

The GAO has not yet issued guidance on what the Trump
administration's proposal would cost, but suffice to say it
would cost more than today's system. It also remains to be seen
where this policy change ranks in the legislative priorities of
congressional Republicans, who seem eager to move quickly on
other issues first.

Graduate PLUS loan program could be on the chopping block

Over the course of the campaign, President-elect Trump spoke of
having the federal government exit from the business of student
loans entirely in favor of full privatization. It's difficult,
but not impossible, to foresee such a pullback. That said,
there's a good likelihood of at least one aspect of the program
being cut: Graduate PLUS.

The Graduate PLUS loan program — which provides federal loans to graduate students
that are intended to cover whatever gap remains after
traditional financial aid has been exhausted — hasn't performed
to expectations according to the GAO's recent report, and it's
possible that it will be on the chopping block.

Given the costs of operating the program, and the benefits of
focusing income-based repayment and loan forgiveness programs
on undergraduate borrowers, it wouldn't be surprising to see
the government exit the program in 2017.

Colleges may have to put more skin in the game

An increasingly popular idea on both sides of the aisle is to have
colleges, which are able to operate largely thanks to student
loan funding, share in the risk of those loans. For instance,
if a certain percentage of a college's graduates default on
their loans, that school could see access to federal programs
restricted. The idea here is that if schools have some skin in
the game, their interests will be better aligned with those of
their students.

There are a variety of ways such a measure could be
implemented. The American Enterprise Institute, an influential
think tank among conservatives, has sketched a range of different
implementations, including charging institutions a
percentage of the outstanding balance on non-performing loans
in a given cohort using a sliding scale.

Adopting policies that encourage schools to consider their
students as investments worth making could pay off for future
borrowers, both in terms of debt levels and quality of
education.

Increasing the role of the private sector

As noted above, the private sector is likely to play a larger
role in the lives of those with, or set to take on, student
debt. But private sector involvement isn't just limited to
making loans. It also involves helping pay them off.

Employers are playing an increasing role in reducing their
employees' debt burden and using this aid as a way to win and
retain employees. In a survey conducted in February, nearly 90
percent of job seekers with student debt said they think
companies should offer student loan repayment as part of their
benefits package. Companies like mine, SoFi, offer this service
to employers as an administered benefit, just like a 401(k). In
fact, we offer direct contributions to our own employees, up to
$200 monthly.

These programs are still relatively new – only four percent of employers offer student
loan repayment as a benefit today – but there have been bills
in both the House of Representatives and Senate last session
make this to made these kinds of contributions tax efficient –
again, just like a 401(k). With broad bipartisan support for
those bills last session, there's a good chance Congress could
move on the issue in the coming session.

None of this will happen in a vacuum. It remains to be seen how
quickly Congress and the incoming Trump administration will
want to move on student debt issues versus other policy
priorities. Changes in interest rates play a factor here,
especially as they relate to private student loans. But it
seems very likely we'll see one of these changes, if not more,
occur in the course of next year.

Mike Cagney is CEO, chairman, and cofounder of SoFi, an online personal finance company
offering student loan refinancing, personal loans, mortgages,
and other unprecedented products and tools designed to help its
more than 200,000 members get ahead and find success. Learn
more at SoFi.com.